Tag Archives: Eurovision

National Chairperson of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign Fatin Al Tamimi outside RTÉ Studios in Donnybrook, Dublin 4 in March, calling for RTÉ to boycott the Eurovision Song Contest which is taking place in Tel Aviv

I usually find Mark Paul a precise and interesting writer. However, his language in his opinion piece is unusually slipshod.

He describes the call for a boycott of the Israeli-hosted Eurovision song contest as “indiscriminate”, “blunt” and “ill-defined”.

It is none of those things: it is a peaceful, calibrated and proportionate attempt to exert leverage over the Israeli government so that it might change its egregious policies towards Palestinians.

Far from a failure to “communicate fairly” with Israelis, the boycott call is sending a serious and constructive message – that so long as its policies are persisted with, the Israeli government will not be allowed reap the propaganda and other benefits it very consciously seeks to accrue from its sponsorship of cultural events like the Eurovision.

For this mild and measured boycott call to be equated with anti-Semitism is, among other things, an insult to the many Jews (including Israelis) who support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign in defence of Palestinian rights.

The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign fanatics, true to form,have today launched a bullying campaign of harrassment,targeting Sarah McTernan, Irelands entrant in Eurovision song contest to intimidate her into refusing to take part in Tel Aviv.Odd way of marking Int Womens Day

I visited today’s #eurovision protest outside RTÉ today to tell protestors of the Dublin Broadcasting Branch pledge to support any @NUJofficial member who doesn’t wish to participate in coverage on conscientious grounds. pic.twitter.com/7WDaq59Tvv

Some of your readers might be interested in an event taking place on Friday night at 8pm in the Harbour Playhouse in Portobello, D8. “Improvision” – The Eurovision, improvised. Taking all the bad bits of the Eurovision and making it mean something again. Musical accompaniment from “The Hold Me Nows”.